For other forms of architecture and sculpture
popular in Asia Minor,
please see the Art of
Classical Antiquity (c.1000 BCE - 450 CE).

Detail from East Frieze: Athena
seizes a young Giant by the hair.

Detail from North Frieze: the giant
Agrios being clubbed to death.

The Altar
of Zeus at Pergamon

The greatest example of Hellenistic
Greek sculpture, the colossal Altar of Zeus at Pergamon, near Izmir
(Turkey), is a monumental work of Greek art
built by King Eumenes II of the Attalid dynasty, from about 166 to 156
BCE. The altar is adorned with a 370-foot long marble frieze which depicts
the Gigantomachy from Greek mythology. Like the Parthenon
in Athens - another icon of classical antiquity - the Zeus Altar was constructed
on a terrace of the acropolis overlooking the ancient city of Pergamon,
situated on the west coast of Anatolia (now Turkey) in Asia Minor. However,
unlike the Parthenon, it was not a temple but merely an altar, possibly
connected to the Doric Temple of Athena which had been built 150 years
earlier and which stood above the altar on a separate terrace. Furthermore,
unlike the Parthenon's High
Classical Greek sculpture (450-400 BCE), whose statues and reliefs
were always calm and serene and never expressed any particular emotion,
Greek Hellenistic art (323-27 BCE) was
less about harmony and serenity, and more about achieving excitement,
wild movement and strong feeling. This new approach to the art
of sculpture is exemplified in the Pergamon Altar, whose 9-foot high
frieze is alive with huge figures of gods and giants locked in mortal
combat. These images were carved in such high relief that they were almost
detached from the background. The relief
sculpture may portray the mythical victory of Zeus and the Gods over
the Giants, but in reality it celebrates the series of Pergamene victories
over the Celts and other barbarian invaders from the east. Some classical
scholars also believe it equates these Pergamene triumphs with those of
5th century "Golden Age" Athens under Pericles. All that remains
of this extraordinary work of art - arguably the greatest narrative relief
in the history of sculpture - is
part of the Berlin Collection of Classical Antiquities, and can be seen
at the Pergamon Museum, Staatliche Museen, Berlin. For more about the
new style of plastic art exemplified by the Altar of Zeus, see: Pergamene
School of Hellenistic Sculpture (241-133 BCE).

Detail from West Frieze: Nereus, Doris
and Oceanus.

Architecture
and Design

The massive Pergamon Altar, designed according
to the Ionic order of Greek Architecture,
was roughly 115 feet wide (35 metres) and 110 feet deep (33 metres) and
was accessed from the west via a huge stairway, some 65 feet wide (20
metres). The stairway led up to a flat colonnaded roofed-platform or hall,
extending to the front and sides, the latter projecting backwards to overlook
the stairs. The widely-spaced pillars or columns which surrounded the
hall had platforms with Ionic capitals. The roof was studded with numerous
types of statue, including lion
griffins, a quadriga of horses, centaurs and deities, as well as
gargoyles. Through the pillars to the front, was the inner courtyard where
the fire altar itself was situated. The courtyard was decorated with an
eye-level frieze, illustrating the life of Telephus, the legendary founder
of Pergamon.

The upper area sat on a 20-foot high base,
which the stairway cut through on its way to the top. The base consisted
of a pedestal, a frieze of slabs about 9-feet tall adorned with relief
sculpture portraying the battle between the Olympian gods and giants,
and a projecting cornice. The 370-foot frieze (113 metres) is the longest
frieze sculpted in Greek Antiquity after the Parthenon frieze (523 feet),
and was carved from Proconnesian marble, while the rest of the base plus
the upstairs Telephus frieze was made from darker marble from Lesbos-Moria.
The foundation of the base (which can be examined in situ at Pergamon)
was composed of intersecting tuff walls laid out like a grating, which
provided extra protection against earthquakes.

Although there is no archeological record
of any paint having been found, the tradition of sculpture
from ancient Greece suggests that the entire structure of the Zeus
Altar was painted in bright colours.

The Gigantomachy
Frieze

The building as a whole is believed to
have been designed by Phyromachos, the last of the greatest
sculptors from Ancient Greece, who included Kresilas (c.480-410),
Myron (active 480-444), Phidias
(488-431 BCE), Polykleitos
(active c.450-430), Callimachus
(active 432-408), Skopas (active
395-350), Praxiteles (active
375-335) and Lysippos (c.395-305).
However, whether Phyromachos himself was involved in the sculpting of
the frieze is not known.

The Gigantomachy frieze adorning the base
is made up of over 100 individual panels showing gods in combat with giants,
in an exemplary display of Hellenistic marble
sculpture filled with action, emotion and movement. The story derives
from Greek legend: once the new gods led by Zeus, with the support of
the goddess Gaia, had overcome the old gods marshalled by Cronus, Zeus
then decided to oppose a number of Gaia's children.

East Frieze
Sculpture

This side contains most of the major Olympian
gods, including the goddess Hecate, who fights the giant Klytios. Next
comes Artemis, armed with a bow and arrow against Otos. Her hunting dog
savages another Giant on the neck. Leto, the mother of Artemis, fights
at her daughter's side against an animal-like Giant; she is helped by
Artemis's twin brother Apollo, who has just shot Ephialtes with an arrow.
A barely decipherable panel shows Demeter and Hera, Zeus and Heracles
(known from a lion's paw). Zeus hurls bolts of lightning against two young
Giants and their leader, Porphyrion. After this, Athena, the patron goddess
of Pergamon, is struggling against the giant Alkyoneus and his mother
Gaia. Finally, we see Ares, the god of war, riding into battle on a chariot.

South Frieze
Sculpture

This starts with Rhea, the goddess of Asia
Minor, mounted on a lion. Next to her, three gods, one of which is Hephaistos,
are battling a massive giant. Other divinities sculpted on the south frieze
include: Eos, goddess of the dawn; Theia goddess of day and night stars,
Selene, the moon goddess; Aither, Uranos, his daughter Themis, goddess
of justice. Finally we see the titan Phoibe with her daughter Asteria.

West Frieze
Sculpture

On the north risalit of the Altar, several
ocean gods are carved, all of whom are fighting Giants. They include Triton
and his mother Amphitrite; the couple Nereus and Doris, Oceanus and Tethys.
On the south risalit, several gods of nature and mythological beings are
depicted, including: Dionysus and his mother Semele. Here also, can be
seen the only artist's signature on the Altar - THEORRETOS.

North Frieze
Sculpture

Greek gods sculpted on the north face include:
Aphrodite, her lover Ares, her mother, and her young son, Eros. They are
followed by the twins Castor and Pollux. The next six fighters are linked
with Ares, the god of war. Their precise identities are uncertain, but
it seems they include Nyx and one of the Erinyes, goddesses of revenge.
We also see the three Moirai (goddesses of fate). In the next group,
there is a "lion goddess", supposedly Ceto. After this comes
Poseidon, god of the sea.

The Telephus
Reliefs

The upper inner courtyard, which housed
the fire altar, had less space. Accordingly, the Telephus reliefs were
created on shallower slabs that those used for the Gigantomachy around
the base. At only 4 feet 9 inches tall, the slabs were also considerably
shorter. However, if the Telephus stone
sculpture was created on a smaller scale, its quality was in no way
inferior: in fact, it contained a number of technical innovations in the
way that images were organized on the relief panel, which exerted a strong
influence on later Hellenistic-Roman
art (c.50 BCE - 200 CE). The figures, for instance, were staggered
in depth; background landscapes are more detailed and scenic; and architectural
features are used to indicate indoor activities. The pictorial cycle of
the frieze concerns the life of Telephus, son of the hero Heracles and
one of the heroes of Greek legend, as mentioned in 5th-century BCE writings
by Aischylos, Euripedes and Sophocles. See also: Hellenistic
Statues and Reliefs.

History of the
Pergamon Altar

The Pergamene kingdom in north-west Asia
Minor - contested by both Antigonus I (Monophthalmus) and Seleucus I (Nicator),
two former generals of Alexander the Great who "inherited" the
Greek, Byzantine and Persian parts of his empire - was founded in 281
by Philetaerus (c.343-263 BCE). He became the originator of the Attalid
dynasty, which ruled Pergamon from 281 to 133 BCE, turning the city into
an important cultural centre of Greek art and science. Since Philetaerus
was a eunuch, he chose a successor (Eumenes), who in turn was succeeded
by Attalus I, who won a major victory over the Celtic Galatian tribes
in 228 BCE. Under Attalus II and Eumenes II, the size of the Pergamene
city-state was extended, Hellenism was fully embraced, and the acropolis
overlooking Pergamon was developed to include several temples and the
second largest library in the classical Greek world (200 BCE). An alliance
was later struck with Rome to guarantee Pergamene territorial integrity.
Thus by about 180 BCE, the Attalids were securely established as rulers
of an important centre of Greek culture, and anxious to legitimize their
dynasty both in the eyes of the gods, as well as their secular neighbours.
The Altar of Zeus at Pergamon was one of several examples of monumental
architecture which the Attalids relied upon to achieve their spiritual
and political aims. As it was, Attalus III died with no heir, and bequeathed
the city to the Romans. See also: Roman
Architecture (c.400 BCE - 400 CE).

Chronology
and Dating

Analysis of excavated remains from the
site, now part of Turkey, have caused some changes in the envisaged chronological
timeline. Until relatively recently, scholars assumed that the Zeus Altar
was commissioned in 184 BCE by Eumenes II following his victory over the
Celtic Tolistoagian tribe led by Ortiagon. But modern archeological opinion
prefers a later date, possibly as late as 166-156 BCE, interpreting the
Altar as a general monument to the series of Pergamene triumphs over the
Macedonians, the Celts and the Seleucids. (A fragment of Greek
pottery was discovered inside the Altar's foundation, dating to 172
BCE, which indicated that the structure must have been erected later.)

NOTE: For later sculptors and movements
inspired by the Pergamon Altar, see: Classicism
in Art (800 onwards).

Excavation
of the Pergamon Acropolis

In the late 7th century during the Christian-Arab
conflict, the buildings on the Pergamon acropolis, including the Zeus
Altar, were partly dismantled to provide stone for defence works, and
in 716, the city was temporarily overrun by the Arabs, then abandoned.
Resettled in the 12th century, it was later occupied by the Turks. Over
the next eight centuries, the Pergamon Altar was visited by a number of
European explorers, art collectors
and travellers, including (latterly): the French classical scholar Comte
de Choiseul-Gouffier, the English architect Charles Cockerell, the German
archeologist Otto von Stackelberg and the German antiquarian Otto Friedrich
von Richter.

The Prussian engineer Carl Humann (1839-96)
visited Pergamon for the first time in 1864, returning several times during
the following years. He strongly advocated the preservation of the cultural
antiquities on the city's acropolis, which was being used as a quarry
by local inhabitants who were also breaking up the marble sculptures to
obtain building material. In the end, after supportive interventions by
Ernst Curtius, the Berlin classicist, and Alexander Conze, the Director
of Berlin's sculpture collections, as well as a German government anxious
to achieve cultural parity with Britain, Humann excavated the Pergamon
Altar in two major digs (1879 and 1904), with the agreement of the Ottoman
authorities. As a result, the marble relief panels from the Pergamon Altar
together with numerous other fragments were shipped to Berlin.

Reconstruction
in Berlin

In Berlin, Italian restoration experts
reconstructed the marble frieze from the thousands of recovered fragments.
After a series of delays occasioned by physical subsidence, a world war,
and the 1920s Depression, a large brand-new Pergamon Museum designed by
Alfred Messel was finally opened in 1930 to display the reassembled Altar
and frieze. Today, the Pergamon Altar is the top highlight of the Berlin
Collection of Classical Antiquities, and is exhibited in the Pergamon
Museum and the Altes Museum, both of which are located on Berlin's Museum
Island.

Influence

At least one historian, Ampelius, judged
the Altar of Zeus at Pergamon to be one of the Seven
Wonders of the Ancient World. Roman authorities, however, disagreed.
In their opinion, no Hellenistic sculpture could compare with that of
High Classical Greek art (450-400), an opinion shared by 18th century
scholars like the Neoclassicist Johann
Joachim Winckelmann (1717-68). This negative view was the result of
a strong preference for the "Severe" style of Hellenistic sculpture
- see, for instance, the Venus
de Milo or the processional figures on the Ara
Pacis Augustae, in Rome - rather than the vigorous and dramatic "Baroque"
style of Hellenism practised by the Pergamene school - see also Lacoon
and His Sons, another of their works - and later by the Italian
17th century genius Bernini
(1598-1680).

Further Resources

For more information about ancient art
from Classical Antiquity, see the following resources: